Arachnophobia
by Kiriska
Summary: Teshima Junta does not like spiders.


Teshima Junta does not like spiders.

It isn't that he's _afraid_ of them, exactly. He knows, logically and objectively, that most of them are harmless to him and beneficial in general. He knows that they kill other bugs, actual pests like fruit flies and mosquitos, and he knows that popular beliefs, such as spiders crawling into people's mouths when they sleep, are false.

He knows.

But spiders have eight beady eyes and eight spindly or hairy legs, and there is just something _eerie_ and _uncomfortable_ about that. Finding spiders in unexpected places is also upsetting in the way that most unexpected things are.

When he was in elementary school, a classmate brought a pet tarantula to class. Predictably, it escaped midway through the morning and, hours later, it skittered over Teshima's hand when he reached for his bento. The sensation of hairy, finger-like feet brushing over him, especially when he had been expecting his lunch box, had been horrible. Something like that would have surprised anyone, right?

He had yelled out, and some of the boys in his class, thrilled at both finding the spider and at Teshima's "fear," decided it would be fun to drop the tarantula down the back of his shirt.

Teshima Junta is not _afraid_ of spiders, but he definitely, absolutely, really does not like them.

And that's half of why there's still a spider in his kitchen, several hours after he first finds it.

With the exception of the corner of the living room designated as Aoyagi's studio, they keep the apartment reasonably clean. Unwanted guests show up pretty infrequently, and when they do, Teshima just herds them with a duster until they climb out of an open window. It's easy enough, and it's never been a problem. He isn't afraid of flies and crickets, or even bees and wasps. And he isn't afraid of spiders.

But this one is very big, and it hadn't responded to gentle prodding. It's been sitting on the kettle for three hours, and Teshima has not been able to brew tea.

He has a lot of homework to do though, and forgets about the spider thirty seconds into reviewing the long list of things he needs to study if he wants to not fail vector calculus.

Long shadows spill across the living room as the afternoon wanes. From the window, the spider plant's vines and leaves stretch all the way across the floor, creeping towards the far edges of apartment. Teshima sighs and leans back on the couch. The words and numbers in the textbook have begun to blur, and his handwriting has gotten sloppier and more erratic, barely readable.

He needs to turn on the light, but can't summon up the energy to get up. The light switch is very far away.

It'd be different if he had gotten to have his afternoon tea.

Remembering the possibility of tea gives him a short burst of energy though: just enough to get him on his feet, to have his hand fall against the light switch, and to clumsily stumble towards the kitchen. Surely the spider isn't _still_ there?

But it is.

It's still sitting on the kettle, nestled in nicely where the handle meets the pot. It's large and black with legs that were bare until the very bottom of each, which were covered in fuzzy black hair. Eight beady eyes taunt him from the top of its little head.

"Why are you still here?" Teshima mutters. "I need to make dinner soon."

He pulls out a chopstick from the utensils drawer and nudges the spider again. It flails its first four legs at him in response, but doesn't move.

Sighing loudly, Teshima picks up the empty kettle by the spout and brings it to the open window. The sun halfway gone. He holds the kettle sideways and shakes twice. The spider stays where it is. He nudges it again with the chopstick. The spider looks for a moment like it might actually be pushed off its perch and out the window, but then it ducks under the point of the chopstick and skitters around the side of the pot, towards the spout. Panicking, Teshima flings the kettle across the kitchen, and it clatters loudly on the tiles.

The door of the apartment opens quietly accompanied by a soft, "I'm home."

Aoyagi takes off his shoes and flings his bag casually across the room to his designated studio corner, then peeks into the kitchen to find Teshima staring blankly at the kettle, which has sort-of rolled under the table.

"Ah," Teshima turns to him, grinning sheepishly. "Welcome home, Hajime!"

Aoyagi glances pointedly at the kettle, then back at Teshima.

"I just dropped it, that's all," Teshima says, crouching to pick it up. "I was just about to start dinner, so you should just relax a while. Ah... sorry about the mess in the living room. I'll clean up my books and stuff after dinner. You can just shove them out of the way if you want."

Teshima places the kettle back on the stove, then moves towards the kitchen entryway for a kiss and his apron.

"Did you have a good day?"

Aoyagi smiles and leans up another kiss, then sits down at the table.

"Do you want some tea? I've been trying to make a pot all afternoon..." Teshima picks up the kettle again and starts filling it with water.

A few seconds into this, the spider shoots suddenly out of the spout and skitters up Teshima's arm. Teshima yelps and drops the kettle into the sink, then starts shaking his arm violently.

"_Junta_."

Teshima backs into Aoyagi, who grabs hold of his arm roughly. Teshima stills himself immediately, and Aoyagi plucks the spider off with surprising skill and accuracy.

Securing it between a thumb and forefinger, Aoyagi walks to the window and calmly hurls the spider out of their fourth story apartment. Behind him, Teshima lets out a long sigh and leans back against the kitchen counter.

"It's been there all day?" Aoyagi asks, turning back to him with a vague smile.

"Yeahhhh…" Teshima admits, reddening slightly.

"That's why you couldn't make tea?"

"Yeahhhhhhhhhhh…"

Aoyagi grins and walks over to him, slipping his arms around his waist. "I'm glad I could save you from it," he says, smiling into Teshima's shoulder.

Teshima sighs again and relaxes into his boyfriend's arms. He kisses the top of his head, then laughs.

"Me too."


End file.
